What's hot in conjoint: A recap from the 2013 Sawtooth Software Conference

By Chris Fotenos

Sawtooth Software, an Orem, Utah, developer of discrete choice modelling software, held its 17th U.S.-based conference this past October in Dana Point, Calif. Many of the top minds in conjoint gathered to share their learnings and progress in the field. Perhaps most importantly, they debated the future of discrete choice methods. There weren't necessarily any game-changing topics brought to the forefront, yet much of the discussion focused on questions all conjoint researchers have been - and must be - thinking about to continue extracting relevant insights from modern consumers: How can we make respondents more engaged in our surveys? Can conjoint go mobile and still provide high-quality results? And, as in any industry, how can we do more with the data we collect?

The garbage in, garbage out principle has never been so true as when it's applied to the design of marketing research. Too often, researchers begin a project with a list of survey questions or a technique in mind. The outcome is typically a long, cumbersome survey instrument, leading to data with little actionability. Worse, the researchers have positioned themselves as techies and not as true, value-added consultants to the marketing decision maker.

Here's how to avoid that failure scenario. This five-step research design process has worked successfully for me over the course of a couple hundred research projects.

The Social Side of ResearchIdeas and insights on MR from around the Web

The Quirk's e-newsletter regularly highlights a handful of active and intriguing discussions from LinkedIn and other forums around the Web so you can stay on top of the research scuttlebutt as it's happening. Here are four popular discussions from the past few weeks. More details after the jump. Comments have been edited for clarity and brevity.

Harris Goldstein recalls conducting a survey where the computer printout revealed a relatively high percentage of "no" answers when Canadian men were asked what type of underwear they wore - boxers or briefs. Suspicious of the high number of no answers, Goldstein investigated further and found no interviewer or data processing errors.